Source: Airbus
Qatar
Airways is the launch operator for both the A350-900 and A350-1000 and a major
customer for the A350 -holding orders for 80 aircraft- although 2 years ago at
the Dubai air show signed orders for 60 Boeing 777X (10 -8X and 50 -9X) for
delivery from 2020.
Qatar
Airways Group CEO Akbar Al Baker told Flightglobal that he believes Airbus
must develop a larger A350 to compete effectively with Boeing and his airline
is a potential customer.
Source: Airbus
“We
would be interested in a stretch of the A350-1000. Airbus has no alternative – to
be competitive it will have to do something that is bigger and better than the
777-9X,” he said.
Source: Airbus
To achieve this, Al Baker said the A350 stretch will need to incorporate “new engine technology” and doubted that the existing Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engine could be adapted for the larger variant as the powerplant “is already at its fullest” for the A350-1000.
Source: Airbus
Despite
the large 777X commitment, Al Baker would still see a role for a larger A350 in
the Qatar Airways fleet, should it offer sufficient performance: “It would
be bigger than the -9X and we believe it will have a superior fuel burn,” he said.
Based
on the article “Qatar interested in A350 stretch: Al Baker” published in
FlightGlobal
How could any a350 variant be "bigger" than a 777-9 when the b777 is wider than the a350? It would have to be one super long aircraft for it to be "bigger" as Al Baker says.
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ReplyDeleteAl baker as good a man as he is for Airbus is not an engineer. Something bigger than the 777-9 would have to be a complete new aircraft or a A380-900 neo. with a customer base to support it. Plus if it was bigger,it to would need folding wings to stay within the confines of the 80sq yd box of the A380 gates (It would be a major headache for airlines and airports to build bigger gates). I would suggest that Airbus concentrate on whether the A380/9 neo is viable if not stay at the A350-1000 level. If Airbus were to build the A350-1100 then RR would struggle to find an engine powerful enough in time. So GE engines would be required; but there's another problem in that GE are upto their necks at the moment providing for the 777-9 programme and have already refused the A380 neo as not a big enough market to cover new engine costs.So is their a market for the 1100 or something even bigger? I dont think there is, as the A380 is finding out. Al Baker is really saying, we should have a competitor to the 777-9 but we dont.
ReplyDeleteIt seems Al Baker would be the only customer for this tall-order airplane. It may not happen.
ReplyDeleteAl Baker "bigger" means A 380/9 I guess for sure the A350-1000+ with 2 engines ?
ReplyDeleteAl Baker "bigger" means A 380/9 I guess for sure the A350-1000+ with 2 engines ?
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteMark not really sure what you mean but the A350-1000 is two engined with the capacity of 369 seats. The 777x-9 is two engined and seats 400.
ReplyDeleteThe A380-9 needs to be neo to compete with the 777x-9. The 777x-9 huge advantage is cargo carrying capacity-i.e. seats plus cargo. The acheilles heel of the A380 is its cargo capacity. So it needs to be the 900 and neo to make it more efficent than the 777x-9.
JC